SYDNEY - The Jehovah's Witnesses Church in Australia failed to report to police more than 1,000 cases of child sexual abuse going back more than 60 years, a government investigation into abuse and its aftermath heard on Monday.

SYDNEY - An Australian nurse alleged to have given medical assistance to Islamic State militants fighting in Syria could face arrest for violating tough new security laws when he lands in Sydney on Friday, police and officials said.

TOKYO/SYDNEY - A Japanese government team is in talks with at least two top British firms to help a Japanese consortium land one of the world's most lucrative defense contracts, sources in Tokyo said, a $50 billion project to build submarines for Australia.

SYDNEY - A prominent Australian Muslim leader criticized the government's $1 billion program to deradicalize Muslim youths on Wednesday, saying it put too much emphasis on law enforcement and not enough on factors that drive young people to fight overseas.

UNITED NATIONS - Russia is pushing for a greater U.N. role in an investigation into what caused the downing of a passenger plane in eastern Ukraine after dismissing a proposal by Malaysia, Australia, the Netherlands, Belgium and Ukraine for a U.N.-backed tribunal.

SYDNEY - A small vessel believed to be carrying asylum seekers was seen off Australia's remote west coast on Monday, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. (ABC) reported, the first sighting of a boat carrying would-be refugees close to shore in two years.

MELBOURNE - Several hundred Australian nationalists and anti-racism activists clashed with police in Melbourne on Saturday in a rare display of violence in a country where immigration is an increasingly emotive political issue.

HRABOVE, Ukraine - Ukraine's president accused Russia's military on Friday of ordering the missile strike that brought down Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 one year ago, as relatives gathered from the Netherlands to Australia to remember the 298 passengers and crew. | Video

CAIRO - The United States and Egypt are returning to a "stronger base" in bilateral ties despite tensions and human rights concerns, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Sunday after talks with his Egyptian counterpart.